feb. 5, 1810 (mon.)

Even in the depths of winter Mr. Jefferson's thoughts are on the coming growing season. This morning he wrote to a friend in Baltimore asking if he could get him some gypsum to enhance the soil in the fields. Mr. Jefferson is up on all the modern, scientific farming methods, and John Binns, another Virginian, recommended the use of gypsum in his recent book, "A Treatise on Practical Farming." It doesn't matter whether it's pre-ground or comes in lumps; it can be ground at the mill here.